Washington

Cydly Langer Smith succeeded her mother, Helen Langer Smith, who is replacing her daughter as the vice chairman of the $900 million-asset bank, it said late Wednesday.

Capitol Bancorp has struck a deal to sell yet another one of its bank units. AmericanWest Bank in Spokane, Wash., will buy Bank of the Northwest for $17 million in cash.

Three failures late Friday, including a pair in Georgia, cost the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. an estimated $445 million.

After years of experimentation, some banks are finding the right mix of technology, ambiance and human interaction. The most effective formula varies, and the only constant is that there are no absolutes.

The $2.4 billion-asset company said late Friday that it had filed a registration with the Securities and Exchange Commission seeking approval to start selling stock in July.

Columbia Banking System Inc. of Tacoma, Wash., said late Tuesday that its chief executive had joined the board of the American Bankers Association.

While states like Washington and Oregon have had their share of failures, there have been several deals to save larger struggling banks there, too. Add Cascade Financial Corp. in Everett, Wash., to that pile.

The Federal Reserve Board said it has reached a written agreement with Westside Banking Co. of University Place, Wash.

The Federal Reserve Board acted against three banks Tuesday. Bank of Whitman in Colfax, Wash., was hit with a prompt corrective action after the Fed found that the $722.2 million-asset bank was undercapitalized and failed to submit an acceptable capital restoration plan.

After saving his Washington bank from failure through an ingenious bankruptcy strategy, Patrick Rusnak has been scooped up by an in-city competitor.

With one of the largest war chests of capital in the Pacific Northwest, Columbia Banking in Tacoma, Wash., has long been viewed as one of that market's likely consolidators.

Washington Federal Inc. in Seattle said Thursday that fourth-quarter net income more than tripled to $24.5 million from $7.9 million a year earlier.

Anchor Bancorp in Aberdeen, Wash., launched a syndicated community offering Wednesday to complete its conversion to a stock company from a mutual.

Yakima Valley Credit Union in Yakima, Wash., said Wednesday that it has signed a nonbinding letter of intent to merge with Catholic Credit Union to create a credit union with almost $500 million in assets and serving 50,000 members.

The Federal Reserve Board reached written agreements with five community banks Thursday.

Rarely is bankruptcy court a welcome detour, but more struggling banks may take it to overcome debtholders blocking their recapitalization efforts.

Several banks rushed to repay investments under the Troubled Asset Relief Program in December, but hundreds head into the new year desperate for an exit strategy, even if it means selling.

Washington Trust Bank in Spokane is offering mobile banking services to its customers through text, mobile Web and dedicated applications using mFoundry Inc.'s software.

AmericanWest Bancorp, a $1.5 billion-asset company in Spokane, Wash., chose to clear the $6.5 million sale through the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Washington.

Heritage Financial Corp. in Olympia, Wash., is taking a 10% discount to its common stock to raise $50 million of fresh capital.